Applying BEQUEST for Sustainable Urban Development - Essay Example

Applying BEQUEST for Sustainable Urban Development Hypothesis According to Kohler (2002) “the BEQUEST Protocol almost became a sort of guideline in planning, development, designing, building and managing the built environment when sustainability is a major goal. The ‘protocol’ document on the Extranet site is structured along the BEQUEST framework. For each issue there is a list of recommendations of what to do, or to respect. It is situated somewhere between a checklist, with control questions and a performance list. The value of this type of document is not evident.” This study is based on Kohler’s hypothesis, and includes a review of BEQUEST framework, protocol and assessment methods for sustainable urban property development. This review includes an examination and review of the relationship between BEQUEST framework and protocol; the protocol of sustainable urban property development; assessment methods available to evaluate what the protocol contributes towards the sustainability of urban development; and where the protocol has been applied and the SUD gains this has generated. Sustainable Urban Property Development Environmental problems ranging from excessive consumption of natural resources and pollution of the environment have been attributed to construction and building activities. Research is underway for green building design, and use of materials for minimising the environmental impact. Sustainability assessments have gained importance, and environmentally friendly design at project appraisal stage has been considered the ideal stage for the incorporation of environmental matters (Ding, 2008). Sustainable urban development (SUD) initiatives include Smart Growth and Building Environmental Quality Evaluation for Sustainability through Time (BEQUEST). BEQUEST bridges all scales of action including planning to component manufacture allowing all actors view the scope of urban development problem. BEQUEST is a Pan-European research initiative funded by the European Commission. The Extranet is an advisory body with over 100 European professionals and researchers. According to Kohler (2002), results of BEQUEST project on sustainable urban development have been viewed as conceptual contributions, and as a dynamic network. The usual scope of sustainable urban development has been expanded to include time and space continuity, which is significant. Framework, decision support system, inventory of assessment methods, toolkit and protocol are the different parts of BEQUEST. Achievements of BEQUEST include a broader perspective for addressing sustainable urban development issues. BEQUEST Framework The BEQUEST framework is a conceptual model for SUD providing a roadmap for main issues in SUD. In the quest for more sustainable development, the practical aspects of development and change in towns and cities have been linked to social and economic issues of modern life. Issues in SUD have been divided into four main categories; development activities, environmental and social issues, spatial level, and time scale (see figure 1). Figure 1. BEQUEST Framework (Duran-Encalada and Paucar-Caceres, 2007) Planning, property development, design, and construction and operation are main urban development activities that do not only include consideration of buildings and space between buildings, but also the utility and transport infrastructure that connects them together. Environmental and societal issues arise from the development. Spatial levels could be action or impact, and include global levels to those directly related to the elements of buildings. The impacts that might be experienced or assessed are over a time scale. The environmental and social issues have been subdivided into environmental, economic, social and institutional for harmonisation with the UN Committee on Sustainable Development’s Working List of Indicators for Sustainable Development. According to Duran-Encalada and Paucar-Caceres (2007), by considering the issues associated with sustainable urban development, existing built environments are adapted over time for supporting more sustainable patterns of living and working. A city can achieve sustainable urban development by the use of resources in an efficient and egalitarian way; and add environmental and social capacities for meeting the cities dependencies. A set of assessment methods have been compiled, within BEQUEST, that transcend traditional environmental and valuation techniques. Environmental valuation and forms of sustainability assessment are two general groups of methods. Environmental valuation includes valuation of various types, and forms of sustainability assessment have been directed at specific valuations. Forms of sustainability have been further divided into environmental appraisal and environmental impact assessment. Environmental appraisal includes simple base-line classification, while environmental impact assessment includes complex and advanced evaluations. Table 1. Environmental Assessment Methods (Duran-Encalada and Paucar-Caceres, 2007) Environment Forms of Sustainability Assessment Environmental Appraisal EIA Contingent valuation Compatibility matrix Project Cost benefit Eco-profiling Strategic; Economic, Social Hedonistic analysis Environmental auditing Community evaluation Multi-criteria Flag method BEES Travel cost theory Spider analysis Eco-points Green Building Code MASTER framework Meta-analysis (Pentagon method) NAR model Quantitative city model Regime analysis SPARTACUS Sustainable city model Sustain Communities Sustainable regions Transit-oriented settlement Assessment methods considered by BEQUEST have been illustrated in the figure below. Inter-related activities of the urban life cycle; sustainable development issues; spatial level and timescales have been represented in the map. The strength of representation spread across the range of interrelated activities has been illustrated. The most important forms of assessment are urban life cycle; sustainable development issues; spatial level; and time scales of planning policy and infrastructure design activities (Veerker et al., 2008). Figure 2. Assessment Methods (Duran-Encalada and Paucar-Caceres, 2007) A toolkit has been developed as a tool for decisions support system. The tool kit include a common protocol for procurement of sustainable built environment; directory of urban sustainability assessment methodologies; directory of external advisors for assessment practice and protocol actions; and a common language and vocabulary used within the network (Veerker et al., 2008). Figure 3. BEQUEST Toolkit for Decision Making (Duran-Encalada and Paucar-Caceres, 2007) Critical Review of BEQUEST Framework The framework provides a broad outline of tools that help decision making for sustainable urban development. Categories in sustainable urban development are activity; social development issues; spatial level; and time scale. There are methods for environmental assessment including contingent valuation; cost benefit; hedonistic analysis; multi-criteria; and travel cost theory. Forms of sustainability assessment have been included. Forms for environmental appraisal include compatibility matrix; eco-profiling; environmental auditing; flag method; and spider analysis. Forms for environmental impact assessment include project; strategic; economic; social; community evaluation; BEES; eco-points; green building code; MASTER framework; meta-analysis; NAR model; Quantitative city model; Regime analysis; SPARTACUS; sustainable city model; sustain communities; sustainable regions; and transit oriented settlement. A toolkit has been provided for decision making. The toolkit has been developed for answering questions on sustainable development; how to make urban projects more sustainable; how to assess or evaluate urban sustainability on project proposals or situation; how to help understand and apply the assessment method selected; and what the sustainable urban development terms mean. Sustainable urban development has been included in the homepage of the framework. This includes an introductory understanding of the nature and scope of sustainable urban development. Assessment of evaluation of urban sustainability of the project proposals or situation is based on assessment methods. This includes the list of assessment methods that are relevant and useful. Advisors have been included to help understand and apply the assessment methods selected. This includes identification of one or more relevant sustainable urban development advisors or consultants. In order to provide a comprehensive understanding of sustainable urban development terms and their meaning a glossary has been provided. This helps develop a common understanding of sustainable urban development terminology and definitions. The action outcome of the toolkit is the implementation or decision making for sustainable urban development. The toolkit provides a comprehensive range of approaches, methods, and tools the practice of sustainable urban development. However, the application of tools in each of the several domains requires extensive knowledge or experience within each specific domain. Also, some of the tools are generic in nature and can be applied with varying levels of expertise. This is compounded by the availability of a multitude of tools for the exercise or activity. More often than not, the application of a variety of tools for the same application results in conclusions that is different from each other. This confounds the problem as to which tool method has provided the desirable results. This has constrained the application of tools to attain desired outcomes. BEQUEST Protocol The BEQUEST Protocol describes actions for actors. Protocols have been developed to consider sustainable urban planning, urban property development, urban design, construction and operation of buildings (Curwell et al, 2005a). Issues include environmental, economic, social, and institutional issues for urban design. Urban district, neighbourhood and/or estate and associated spaces are the three dimensions of urban design. This includes the disposition of groups of buildings; landscape features and associated infrastructure such as roads, footpaths and transport modes; and utility services connecting buildings. These are within the context of spatial, economic and social elements of a local plan or regeneration by the municipal authorities. As urban design does not involve design of individual buildings or facilities, but the general form of landscaping elements of infrastructure and other spaces, the result is a master plan of urban design proposals. The detailed design, specification of buildings, transport and utility service facilities are carried out by others. Architects, transport and utility engineers, cost consultants/surveyors, town and city managers and administrators are professional actors involved in the process. Other specialists may get involved for addressing some of the listed actions (Kohler et al., 2003). Environmental issues include natural resources; environmental pollution; land use; and bio-diversity. The BEQUEST Protocol for environmental issues have been included in the table below. Table 2. Protocol for Environmental Issues (Kohler et al., 2003) Environmental Issue Protocol Natural resources Review the need to build with client/developer. A determination of whether requirements can be met with greater resource efficiency and re-use of existing buildings and infrastructure should be made. High occupational density should be provided for balancing the need for access to sunlight, green, garden, and other recreational space. Facilities for enabling local waste management, local waste storage and recycling should be provided. Adequate water conservation measures should be provided. Environmental pollution Buildings should be located for minimisation of transport requirements and infrastructure. Energy reduction targets should be set 75 percent or below for designing of buildings and during construction. High quality public transport, cycling and pedestrian routes should be provided. There should be disincentives for private car use in city centres such as parking restrictions and pricing as well as traffic calming measures. Sustainable urban drainage systems should be implemented. Land Use Brown-field sites should be selected within existing urban areas in preference to green-field site. High occupational density should be provided with mixed use of dwelling, industry and retail including access to transport, health-service and recreational facilities. Bio-diversity Flora and fauna should be audited before commencing re/development for identification of endangered or protected species. Protection strategy should be developed for endangered and/or protected species. Flora and fauna habitat destroyed or displaced by development should be replaced. Locally relevant species such as planning of drought resistant species in water stressed areas should ne re/introduced. Economic issues of urban design include production, building stock, transportation and utilities, and finance. BEQUEST Protocol for economic issues have been included in the table below. Table 3. Protocol for Economic Issues (Kohler et al., 2003) Economic Issue Protocol Production Goods, materials, and services should be purchased from local sources wherever possible. Local employment opportunities should be increased. Fair trade and fair employment practices should be followed. Building Stock Existing building stock and infrastructure should be audited to maximise the reuse and refurbishment by the application of best available technology at low costs. Heritage buildings should be preserved and reused. Materials from buildings to be demolished should be reused and/or recycled. Transport and Utilities Local buildings should be located to minimise transportation requirements and provision of new infrastructure. High quality public transport, cycling and pedestrian routes should be provided. Parking restrictions and traffic calming measures should be adopted as disincentives to private car use in the city centres. Local treatment for human waste water and effluent should be provided. Adequate water conservation measures should be provided. Finance The impact of the development on economic sustainability of the neighbourhood and adjoining areas should be assessed. Social issues in urban design include access, safety and security, health and wellbeing, and the community. The BEQUEST Protocol for social issues have been included in the table below. Table 4. Protocol for Social Issues (Kohler et al., 2003) Social Issue Protocol Access Access to all facilities, buildings and mobility should be provided to all sectors of the community including young, disabled and elderly. Access proposals should be negotiated with local access groups and transport providers. Safety and security Buildings and landscape should be designed for improving the sense of security and reducing crime. Security concerns over design proposals should be negotiated with the police. Health and well being Local employment opportunities should be increased. Fair trade and fair employment practices should be followed. Appropriate provision of local health services should be included. Impacts on health of residents and neighbours from the proposals should be negotiated with local health service providers. Community Local community participation in decision making with respect to human development aspects of Agenda 21 should be encouraged from the conception stage. Appropriate participation techniques such as citizens’ advisory for negotiation with the community on project proposals should be employed. Information systems appropriate to each stakeholder group’s need should be set up to advise the community of the project, its aims, objectives, and progress in the design phase. Institutional issues of urban design include governance, justice, and ethical systems. The BEQUEST Protocol for institutional issues has been described below. Table 5. Protocol for International Issues (Kohler et al., 2003) Institutional Issue Protocol Governance The capacity of institutions and the community to maintain and enhance the development and/or urban space over time should be ensured. Application of environmental management during implementation phase of development as a whole should be made mandatory for individual building design and for construction contractors should be required. Justice Ecological footprint for development should be reduced by a factor of 4/10. The development must ensure improvement of social inclusion in the neighbourhood and adjoining areas. Social exclusion through Gentrification of the urban area should be avoided. Ethical systems Material, components and services should be selected from suppliers that have sustainable development policies and practice by the application of social, ethical accounting and reporting techniques. Fair trade and fair employment practices should be followed. Critical Review of BEQUEST Protocol A critical review of each protocol has been described in the table below. Each protocol within each domain has been reviewed. In most cases extensive planning and guidance from local government is adequate to include the protocol. Table 6. Critical Review of Protocols Protocol Critical Review Natural resources Review the need to build with client/developer. A determination of whether requirements can be met with greater resource efficiency and re-use of existing buildings and infrastructure should be made. This is often in conflict with the objectives of a project, especially projects for profit or in the private sector. High occupational density should be provided for balancing the need for access to sunlight, green, garden, and other recreational space. Appropriate guidelines or policy has to be developed by local governments. Facilities for enabling local waste management, local waste storage and recycling should be provided. Sometimes the project goals are in conflict with this protocol. Generally, the enhancement of practices for waste management is desirable for all projects. Adequate water conservation measures should be provided. Water conservation is desirable for all kinds of projects. Sometimes the project goals have to be aligned with the protocol. Environmental Pollution Buildings should be located for minimisation of transport requirements and infrastructure. Projects are often dictated by terms of associated costs and feasibility analysis. Sometimes projects cannot be ideally located for satisfying this protocol. Energy reduction targets should be set 75 percent or below for designing of buildings and during construction. Energy reduction targets are desirable for all buildings. However, setting energy reduction targets of below 75 percent may not always be practical. High quality public transport, cycling and pedestrian routes should be provided. Projects have specific objectives. These considerations are feasible for larger projects. There should be disincentives for private car use in city centres such as parking restrictions and pricing as well as traffic calming measures. These are desirable in dense urban projects or large urban projects. All projects can have some extent of disincentives for the use of private vehicles in city centres, and traffic calming measures. Sustainable urban drainage systems should be implemented. Sustainable urban systems are desirable in all projects. Projects regardless of objectives can implement urban drainage systems. Land Use Brown-field sites should be selected within existing urban areas in preference to green-field site. Wherever available brown-field sites should be selected for green-site projects. These are practically feasible for large scale projects or public sector undertakings. High occupational density should be provided with mixed use of dwelling, industry and retail including access to transport, health-service and recreational facilities. High occupational density can be achieved in certain projects. Projects of such nature require advanced planning and consensus building among stakeholders. This requires awareness campaigns using media such as TV and newspapers, and holding public awareness and discussion sessions. Bio-diversity Flora and fauna should be audited before commencing re/development for identification of endangered or protected species. Projects often have specific objectives. Sometimes project objectives can be in conflict with this protocol. However, as far as possible the protocol can be accommodated. Protection strategy should be developed for endangered and/or protected species. Projects could be limited by cost constraints, and could be in conflict with this protocol. However, large or public sector projects can make accommodations for this protocol. Flora and fauna habitat destroyed or displaced by development should be replaced. Projects with specific objectives could be in conflict with this protocol. However, large scale or public sector projects can apply this protocol. Consideration should be given to audit the application of this protocol. Locally relevant species such as planning of drought resistant species in water stressed areas should ne re/introduced. Projects often have specific objectives and could be in conflict with this protocol. Larger and public sector projects could include this protocol. Some form of regulation is desirable to audit the application of this protocol. Production Goods, materials, and services should be purchased from local sources wherever possible. Procurement strategies in projects are often bound by costs. High levels of awareness and some form of regulatory guidance is desirable to ensure application of this protocol. Local employment opportunities should be increased. Projects have specific objectives including procurement strategies. This protocol should be included while developing procurement strategies, and some form of guidance from local governments is desirable. Fair trade and fair employment practices should be followed. Projects are often bound by specific constraints. However, whenever possible the protocol can be applied. This requires working with local authorities for ensuring that fair trade and employment practices have been applied. Building Stock Existing building stock and infrastructure should be audited to maximise the reuse and refurbishment by the application of best available technology at low costs. Some form of regulation is desirable to audit existing stock of buildings and infrastructure. Projects have specific objectives including procurement of materials. Application of this protocol requires widespread implementation of sustainable practices in procurement strategies. Heritage buildings should be preserved and reused. Regulation or guidance is required to audit heritage buildings and their restoration. Policies should be developed for the reuse of such buildings. Materials from buildings to be demolished should be reused and/or recycled. Widespread change in practise in procurement strategy is required for implementation of this protocol. This requires local government and developers and construction contractors to coordinate and work together to develop suitable practices. Transport and Utilities Local buildings should be located to minimise transportation requirements and provision of new infrastructure. Application of this protocol requires guidance based on long term planning. Developers and local governments need to work together while applying the protocol. High quality public transport, cycling and pedestrian routes should be provided. Stakeholders including local governments, developers and construction contractors should work together to apply this protocol. Parking restrictions and traffic calming measures should be adopted as disincentives to private car use in the city centres. Local government has to develop guidance or policy for disincentives for private vehicle use in city centres. Local treatment for human waste water and effluent should be provided. Appropriate guidance and policy is required. Developers can work with local governments to develop suitable facilities. Adequate water conservation measures should be provided. This protocol is highly desirable regardless of projective objectives. Finance The impact of the development on economic sustainability of the neighbourhood and adjoining areas should be assessed. Economic sustainability indicators should be included in addition to conducting environmental impact assessments. Access Access to all facilities, buildings and mobility should be provided to all sectors of the community including young, disabled and elderly. This protocol is highly desirable, and should be reflected in policies at the onset of the project. Access proposals should be negotiated with local access groups and transport providers. This requires advance planning, and working together with different groups. The plans should be worker in advance of the commencement of the project. Safety and security Buildings and landscape should be designed for improving the sense of security and reducing crime. The protocol can be easily accommodated, by proper consideration during design stages. Security concerns over design proposals should be negotiated with the police. Developers should consult with the local government and police for enforcement of this protocol. Health and well being Local employment opportunities should be increased. Developers should work with local authorities for providing opportunities for employment. Fair trade and fair employment practices should be followed. Developers should work with local authorities for provision of fair trade and employment opportunities. Appropriate provision of local health services should be included. Developers should work with local authorities for provision for provision of appropriate local health services. Impacts on health of residents and neighbours from the proposals should be negotiated with local health service providers. The results from impact assessments should be communicated and discussed with local health service providers. Community Local community participation in decision making with respect to human development aspects of Agenda 21 should be encouraged from the conception stage. This protocol is highly desirable and a forum should be provided for local community participation. Appropriate participation techniques such as citizens’ advisory for negotiation with the community on project proposals should be employed. Guideline and policy is desirable for participation techniques such as citizen’s advisory. Information systems appropriate to each stakeholder group’s need should be set up to advice the community of the project, its aims, objectives, and progress in the design phase. The application of IT should be maximized to make as much information available about the project to different stakeholders. Governance The capacity of institutions and the community to maintain and enhance the development and/or urban space over time should be ensured. This requires appropriate guidance from the local government. Application of environmental management during implementation phase of development as a whole should be made mandatory for individual building design and for construction contractors should be required. Appropriate guidance and policy or regulation is necessary to audit reports for environmental management. Justice Ecological footprint for development should be reduced by a factor of 4/10. Careful planning is required to attain this objective. In certain cases project objectives may need to be modified to attain these objectives. The development must ensure improvement of social inclusion in the neighbourhood and adjoining areas. Appropriate guidance and policy from local government is required. Social exclusion through Gentrification of the urban area should be avoided. Appropriate guidance and policy from local government is required. Ethical systems Material, components and services should be selected from suppliers that have sustainable development policies and practice by the application of social, ethical accounting and reporting techniques. This requires changes in procurement practices. Developers and local governments should work together to ensure that practices of suppliers are environmentally sustainable. Fair trade and fair employment practices should be followed. Appropriate guidance and policy from local government is required. Developers and local governments have to work together to apply this protocol. Critical Review of Relationship between BEQUEST Framework and Protocol The relationship between BEQUEST framework and protocol is that the framework provides an environment for the application of the protocol. In order to make an urban project more sustainable, the protocol has been developed within the framework. This includes an action list of good sustainable urban development practice that can be applied in any projects. Protocols include sustainable urban planning, urban property development, urban design, construction and operation of buildings. Issues include environmental economics, social, and institutional issues for the design of urban spaces. Extensive training is desirable for bringing applicants up to date with the practice or the application. Resource constraints seem to be significant, as researchers involved in the development of the framework and protocols have specific focus and the extensive documentation in the form of publications and documents are inadequate. Users have expressed the need for comprehensive method for benchmarking solutions for specific applications. Sustainable Urban Development Assessment Methods With the turn of the century there was a new emphasis on urban agenda with strong implications for regional and spatial planning and policy. The agenda for urban policy was firmly linked with the concept of sustainability, which was interpreted into an official framework for action in the form of sustainable urban development. Funds were allocated for building the necessary conceptual and tool base for meeting the mandate for sustainable urban development. This resulted in the development of literature and the Sustainable Urban development, Volume 2: The Environmental Assessment Methods is a comprehensive addition. The four broad objectives are: the provision of a master list of existing assessment tools which are viable for the assessment of sustainable urban development; provision of a standard description of each of the methods; to categorize the methods into classes based on the application targets; and state the levels of complexity of the tools. The methods reflect a “co-evolutionary approach” for assessing development. This indicates a conscious effort to integrate and determine cross-cutting linkages between biophysical and social systems. The tools are an integration of ecological, economic, and social systems in their conception of sustainability (Deakin et al, 2007). Systems based thinking approaches have been included in table 7. Table 7. Systems Thinking-based Approaches (Deakin et al, 2007) 1. Multimodal systems approach to sustainability planning 2. Values, approaches and evaluative tools for human sustainable cities 3. Role of evaluation in supporting human sustainable development 4. Role of modelling in urban sustainability development Methods for environmental valuation have been described in the table below. Table 8. Methods for Environmental Valuations (Deakin et al, 2007) Method Description of contribution Evaluation of sustainable urban development Cost-benefit analysis Multi criteria analysis Economic valuation and values Contingent valuation Hedonic price analysis Methods for Environmental, Economic and Social Assessments Simple, complex and advanced evaluations Analytics hierarchy analysis Eco-footprint analysis – a method for the exploration of interaction between lifestyles and the built environment Urban spiders – a comparative framework for evaluation and scenario analysis Flag methods – a sustainable test method for urban green area Regime analysis – evaluation of mixed land use Advanced evaluations of urban land use Multifunctional land use analysis PROPOLIS - Integrated method of land use transport and environmental models with indicator, evaluation and presentation systems named Advanced evaluations of urban land use, buildings and estates Sustainability assessment of building design, construction and use Design stage assessment model called BREEAM Life cycle analysis of buildings, groups of buildings and urban fragments Very advanced evaluations of neighbourhoods, districts and cities AUSTIME – a multiagent simulation model applied to assessing the sustainability of housing developments Eco-Quantum and PIMWAG – computer-aided tools measure environmental performance of buildings The green building challenge – a hierarchical assessment tool for building HQE3R – a highly complex neighbourhood-level assessment tool Evaluating sustainability of urban development Methodological issues in assessment of environmental, equity and environmental justice Participative and interactive evaluation Construction of sustainable urban futures Classes of tools lumped together include building design, construction, and use of assessment tools. Issues are addressed in a holistic manner with the aim to bridge various scales of urban development. This includes urban regions and narrows down to components and materials within buildings. The system has demonstrated its usefulness (Hamilton et al., 2002). Critical Review of Assessment Methods There is an extensive documentation of the types of tools that are available for assessment. These tools assess in an integrated fashion the capacity of plans, programs and projects. Urban planners, architects, developers, and contractors can use these tools to evaluate planning, property development, construction, design, operation and use of developed land. These tools demonstrate the integration of environmental, social, and economic systems for sustainable development. Specific systems from each of these domains have been integrated for providing a holistic approach. However, each of these systems provides complex assessments that could be conflict with the outcomes of other systems. This requires consensus building while using and applying these assessment methods. Applications and Gains A project on urban sustainability has been undertaken in Mexico. This includes the development of Puerto Aura in Valsequillo Lake in Puebla. This project has been designed as a sustainable development surrounding the lake. This was motivated by the deteriorating conditions of the lake. The development was characterized as urban due to its proximity to Puebla and Atlixco. Development includes the hydrological micro-basin delimitation; present and potential land use definition; and the division into zones; and land usage proposed as sustainable cells. The project was divided into micro-basin of the lake and zoning proposal (see figure below) (Duran-Encalada and Paucar-Caceres, 2007). Figure 4. Region around Valsequillo Lake (Duran-Encalada and Paucar-Caceres, 2007) A description of criteria for the development project has been included below. Table 8. Criteria (Duran-Encalada and Paucar-Caceres, 2007) Nuclei zones Description Protection Land that has been impaired Restricted usage Land in good conservation Buffer zones Traditional use Land where natural resources have been used in traditional and continuous way Sustainable provision of natural resources Lands where natural resources can be taken advantage of Sustainable provision of agro system Land in use for agricultural and cattle uses Special provision Land that possesses natural resources for social development Public usage Land with natural attractions for leisure and recreation activities Human settlements Land with substantial modification Recovering Land where natural resources have been damaged or modified The urban plan includes an area of 119681 acres and project area of 54325 acres. A polygon (see figure below) was formed considering he methodology to build the protected natural area where different sustainable cells have been planned (see figure below). These include high level ecological hotel infrastructure; thematic parks; business centre; sports area; medium level residence zones; high level residential zones; and master environmental managed unit. Planning activities; environmental, economic, social and institutional sustainable development issues; city region spatial level; and long time scale based on the BEQUEST toolkit. Environmental assessment methods applied are described in the table below (Duran-Encalada and Paucar-Caceres, 2007). Table 9. Environmental Assessment Methods (Duran-Encalada and Paucar-Caceres, 2007) Method Description Environmental appraisal of development plans An integral part of planning and review process based on quantifiable assessment of environmental quality Community impact evaluation This accounts for costs and benefits within specific community sectors Environmental impact assessment This covers projects located in urban and rural areas Financial evaluation of sustainable communities This includes an evaluation of viability of sustainable communities System for planning and research in towns and cities for urban sustainability This assesses sustainability implications of urban land use and transport policies Planning and research of policies for land use and transport for increasing urban sustainability This is an extension of SPARTACUS as it includes transportation and land use models. The PROPOLIS analytical framework was used for urban land use, transport and environment. The SUD Puerto Aura model was used to analyze social, economic, environmental, and institutional dimensions. Sectors were included in each dimension. The social dimension included population and employment; housing; and education and health. The economic dimension included economic and transport. Water, air pollution, and solid waste were sectors in the environmental dimension. Land was included in the institutional dimension (Duran-Encalada and Paucar-Caceres, 2007). Figure 5. Puerto Aurora Development Project (Duran-Encalada and Paucar-Caceres, 2007) The application of BEQUEST in the Puerto Aura case allowed address sustainability issues by examining different sustainability perspectives. The stakeholders found that BEQUEST was the most appropriate for the project in the given circumstances. There were holistic features encompassing economic, social, environmental and institutional dimensions departing from inherent characteristics of urban areas represented by land use and transport. The use of PROPOLIS allowed concrete interactions between land use and transport. The interactions were complemented connecting them to environmental variables. The system dynamics model allowed capture of dynamic interactions implied by sustainable urban development dimensions (Duran-Encalada and Paucar-Caceres, 2007). There are several examples of the application of USD tools. HQ2ER was used in Angers; Anzin; Cannes; Echirolles in France to assure sustainability beyond technical solutions. The use of HQER tools allowed sustainable neighbourhood regeneration (Charlot-Valdieu and Outrequin, 2003). Citizens and government of Kyoto drew up a master concept and master plan for the conservation and renovation of traditional townhouses. Participatory planning or partnership based urban planning methodologies were used allowing conservation and renovation (Kyoto City Council, 2001). The PROPOLIS method was used in Helsinki, Dortmund, Inverness, Firth, Naples, Vicenza, Bilbao, Brussels to address growing traffic and sprawl of urban areas. The use of PROPOLIS allowed enhancement of social dimensions of sustainability, and the project was economically efficient (Lautso, 2004). Conclusion A distinct trend in planning for urban development has been the increasing use of information and communication technologies (Deakin et al., 2005b) along with computing tools. Research and innovation has led to built environment participants adopt IT beyond automation and replication. This includes the extensive use of modelling capabilities. Kohler’s hypothesis has been reviewed. A critical review of the BEQUEST framework, protocol, the relationship between the framework and protocol, and assessment methods has been conducted. BEQUEST is not yet able to provide a full assessment of sustainable urban development. Provision of a wide variety of methods allows professional actors to appreciate the wide range of evaluations for assessing the sustainability of urban developments, and adopt a more integrated approach (Deakin et al., 2002; Cooper and Symes, 2008). References Charlot-Valdieu, C. & Outrequin, P. (2003). HQE²R: Towards a methodology forsustainable neighbourhood regeneration. HQE²R. France. 1-55. Cooper, I. & Symes, M. (2008). Sustainable Urban Development: Rethinking Professionalism in Europe. Routledge: UK. 328. Curwell. S., Deakin, D. & Symes, M. (2005a). Sustainable Urban Development Volume 1. 1(2), 19-42. Curwell. S., Deakin, D. & Symes, M. (2005b). Sustainable Urban Development Volume 1. 1(5), 232-249. Deakin, M., Huovila, P., Rao, S., Sunikka, M. and Vreeker, R. (2002). The assessment of sustainable urban development. Building Research & Information. 30(2), 95 - 108 Deakin, M., Mitchell, G., Nijkamp, P. & Vreeker, R (2007). Sustainable Urban Development, Volume 2: The Environmental Assessment Methods. London: Spon. 530. Ding, G. (2008). Sustainable construction—The role of environmental assessment tools. Journal of Environmental Management. 86 (3), 451-464. Duran-Encalada, J. & Paucar-Caceres, A (2007). Sustainability Model for the Valsequillo Lake in Puebla, Mexico: Combining System Dynamics and Sustainable Urban Development. Mexico: Universidad de las Américas Puebla. 1-46. Hamilton, A., Mitchell, G. & Yli-Karjanmaa, S. (2002) The BEQUEST toolkit:a decision support system for urban sustainability. Building Research & Information. 30(2), 109 — 115. Kohler, N (2002) The relevance of BEQUEST: an observer’s perspective, Building Research & Information (2002) 30(2), 130–138 Kohler, N., Hassler, U., Joachim, M., Bender, T., Gessmann, R., von Both, P. & Zentner, F (2003). Task 3.3 b – Environmental Statement. Vienna: UNIDO. 1-25. Kyoto City Council. (2001). Planning for Kyoto City_Japan. Available at: http://magenta.collexis.net/sustainfo/search/recordsummary.jspx?recordid=2544528682&collexion=Susta Lasuto, K. (2004). PROPOLIS. 269-276. Available at: http://www.eukn.org/binaries/susta/bulk/research/transport-and-mobility/propolis_conclusion_recommendations.pdf Marshall-Ponting, A., Lee, A., Betts, M., Aouad, G., Rachel, C., & Sexton, M. (2002). Information technology support to improved construction processes: inter-disciplinarity in research and practice. Proceeding of the International Conference on Advances in Building Technology. The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong. 4-6. Vreeker, R., Deakin, M., & Curwell, S. (2008). Sustainable Urban Development: Toolkit for Assessment. Roultedge. UK.304. Read More